SRCC cancels talk on protests in Northeast, allege students

A section of students of Delhi University's Shri Ram College of Commerce on Thursday alleged that the institution cancelled a talk on the issue of protests in the Northeast citing that there could be violence on campus if the event took place.

The panel discussion, organised by SRCC's Northeast cell and scheduled to take place on Thursday in college premises, was cancelled by the college administration, the students alleged.

In an emergency meeting held a few hours before the event, the administration and college principal informed the organisers that the event was cancelled due to "unavoidable circumstances", they claimed.

College principal Simrit Kaur didn't respond to messages or calls.

"We were told that they received information about the possibility of violence on campus if the event was to take place.We were also told that there was no balance in our panel and all our speakers had the 'same bent of mind'," the organisers said.

The college authorities also suggested that this event be conducted at a later time as it was unwise to hold it amid the present political climate, the students said.

"We insisted that this was not a politically motivated event and that it was conducted because there exists a complete lack of awareness about the Northeast protests in college," they said.

The organisers accused the students' union of making claims that the event would "lead to violence and spread misleading information among the students".

The speakers at the event were senior journalist Sangeeta Barooah Pisharoty, Pradyot Manikya, editor in chief, the North East Today, DU professor Professor Amrapali Basumatary and two other speakers.

The speakers were informed by the administration that the event was cancelled due to a technical issue.

The organisers claimed that they had got permission for the event on Tuesday but it was cancelled at the last moment.

Some students claimed that communal posters with messages 'Mandir Wahin Ban Raha Hai' have come up inside the college and they have complained about the communal nature of the protests to the college authorities.

CPI(M) leader Prakash Karat was on Wednesday not allowed to enter the Ambedkar University here, where he had gone to deliver a talk on the CAA, with the varsity citing the model code of conduct for Delhi elections for denial of permission, according to Left-backed SFI which organised the event. The Ambedkar University is under the ambit of the Delhi government.